FoodBozo.com

Competition from rivals drives the chain to reinvent a key menu item for the first time in years.

Burger King Corp, the second largest hamburger chain, has changed its french fry recipe for the first time since 1998 as competition from upstarts and traditional fast-food rivals mounts.

Burger King said it made the new fries thicker, reduced sodium and added a coating that makes them crisper and keeps them hotter longer.

The fries, now a bit wider in diameter than a No. 2 pencil, will be available in its more than 7,000 North American Burger King restaurants by December 5. Prices remain the same.

Read more: Burger King debuts thicker fries amid competition

Though both are summer favourites, one should clearly command more space on your BBQ.

This weekend marks the official start to BBQ season—yay! I love the traditional foods of summer: burgers and dogs, creamy salads, yummy desserts. While cookout fare tends not to be the stuff that’s going to win any nutrition awards, you can partake and still walk away with your shorts buttoned. (Check these 7 tricks for staying slim through BBQ season.) It just means making the right choices—and, no, you don’t have to limit yourself to the corn on the cob and watermelon. Just skip (most of) the worst choices; the best ones are often just as satisfying.

1. Bad BBQ main dish: A cheeseburger. A quarter-pound beef burger with a slice of cheese will set you back 510 calories (26 grams of fat). Skipping the cheese will save you about 100 calories. But if you love a good burger, go for it. It’s an excellent source of iron.

Read more: Best and worst BBQ foods

A grill master shares the secrets of preparing the All-American classic at home.

Undoubtedly one of the most frequently cooked items of the summer grilling season, burgers are certainly an all-American food. Of course, there is a wide range of burgers, from simple to complex, and ‘perfect’ arguably means a different type of burger for each person. There are thin, flat griddle ones and thick, charred burgers cooked on the grill. They can be topped with Maine lobster, dipped in French onion soup, or served straight up with just the basics (and maybe some gooey cheese on top).

Many chefs out there have mastered the art of the burger, whether it’s Linton Hopkins of Holeman & Finchdown in Atlanta or Minetta Tavern in New York City, relying on their superior skills or the unique mix of the high-quality meats. But since most of us don’t grind our own beef or plan to mix short rib into our patties, how can home cooks create this perfect burger at home?

Read more: 10 Tips for Making the Perfect Burger

Two Canadian burger joints are using creative ways to get people talking about the big vote.

Two restaurants – a burger joint in British Columbia and a burger and ice cream chain in Ontario – have found creative ways to encourage public discourse about the election.

In British Columbia, New Westminster’s Burger Heaven is hosting a “bun-official” election poll. Customers vote for their favourite federal leader by choosing one of five burgers.

Since the beginning of the campaign, Burger Heaven has sold 1,169 burgers and as of Wednesday the “bun-official” results were as follows:

Harper had 46 per cent of the decided vote, Layton 32 per cent, and Ignatieff had 12 per cent. Green party Leader Elizabeth May trailed with only seven per cent of the decided eats.

Read more: The ‘bun-official’ election burger poll results put Conservatives in tasty lead

An L.A. chain has rethought the meat, bun, and toppings to create a new ideal.

It’s half beef and half beyond belief.

I arrived in Los Angeles not much taken with umami, at least not the way true believers are. Too much mysticism, not enough science. Nor did I care much for the L.A. burger culture, not like the locals. Too many toppings, not enough meat.

Then I tasted the Umami Burger, Adam Fleischman’s cross-cultural merger of Japanese ingenuity and American know-how. And I thought to myself, This is a man among burger men, worthy of our adulation even if he’s always wearing a T-shirt with an Umami Burger logo. (These days, even the greats can’t resist self-promotion.)

Read more: Is This the Best Burger in America?

You know how homemade burgers sometimes lack that exciting, indulgent taste found in your favorite restaurant burgers? Here’s how to fix all that…

Read more here: How to Make Your Burger More Like a (Great) Restaurant Burger

If you’re hankering for a hamburger for lunch, what to order may be the easy part of your decision. The tougher choice: Where to go? That’s right, it’s your burger war roundup.

Read more here: Pizza and Krispy Kreme burgers spark sandwich war

Maybe your kids are screaming for fast food. Or your partner is dying to hit the local rib joint. Or your company is holding its employee appreciation lunch at Fat Joe’s House of Lard. Regardless, you’re trying to watch your weight. So what do you do when the waitress slides a greasy menu into your hands?

Easy. Just order the salad. And if your family and friends tease you for ordering the “wimpy” food? Well, that’s the price you pay for cutting calories, right?

Read more here: 6 Salads Worse Than a Whopper!

If you’re the kind of person who can’t resist ordering “the burger” at restaurants, you must be eating a lot of them these days. They’re everywhere—from a much-hyped $26 version at a Manhattan tavern to a classic California-style one at an emerging Los Angeles mini-chain. Here are 10 must-try versions.

Read more here: The Top 10 Best New Burger Spots

After reporting yesterday on KFC’s Double’s Down newest rival, Friendly’s Grilled Cheese BurgerMelt, we had to try one for ourselves. This glorified patty melt consists of a Friendly’s Big Beef burger with lettuce, tomato, and mayo and, instead of a bun, two grilled cheese sandwiches — we can’t make this stuff up.

Read more here: Friendly’s Grilled Cheese BurgerMelt Taste Test